Small Business Becomes Big with Social Media

You don’t have to be the Pope, the Army, or the President , to profit from engaging in social media. Small businesses can benefit from using “New New” Media as well.

Today’s small companies are increasingly busy, and many use social media to drive customer traffic to their stores. They also keep track of important messages their suppliers and the competition are sending out. One of the most important steps for any social media plan is to monitor the conversations that are going on in the industry. Small business operators can find relevant ways to take part of the social conversation. Since many small business owners are not part of a larger bureaucracy, they can be flexible and innovative.

Anyone, who has Twitter account, can see how the small businesses have engaged with their customers using Twitter and other media sites to promote everything from driving up coffee sales, offering links to coupons, to hiring employees by using social networking sites.

This is a quick and easy way to connect with customers on a daily basis and deepen relationships with existing customers. By building a social network of followers on Twitter for other social media forums, they also benefit from the networking retweeting their offers and messages.

Take a look on Twitter and you see small retailers tweeting gas points, coffee and breakfast specials with promo codes right in the message. Customers just need to bring their smartphones into the store to redeem the discounted or free items. Some retailers hold contests online where customers can win free gift cards just for following them on social media. While there is an investment for small businesses to engage in social media, the benefits may make it worth the effort. There is a small business social media conference that is targeted specifically to that group. I would recommend it to small business owners as they can attend online. Here is the link: http://bit.ly/oTMSna